Sorry for the lack of posts here… I’m stuck in the middle of this weird hobby burnout. In January, I feel like I started full speed ahead, then immediately hit a wall. I’ve been working on a lot of Etsy orders but aside from that, haven’t felt motivated or inspired to get anything else done… which is frustrating because there are things I’d really like to get done.
I want to get back into blogging but it’s been tough to get into that again too. Recently Copperfox posted a 10 Day Challenge on their blog, and in an attempt to get back into the swing of things, I’m going to give it a go. (scattered over the next few weeks/months or so? Cause ten days in a row is too much for me right now)
So, Day 1: Inspiration Day.
“An easy start to our challenge! Find something that inspires you. It could be a picture of an unusual colour of horse that you would like to turn into a model, a how-to tutorial video or a piece in your favourite magazine about collecting things that you love. Or it could be a song, film, piece of poetry- whatever it is, find something that gets your creativity going!”
My inspiration comes from a mix of things. Real horses, obviously, a life-long fascination/love for miniatures, and my younger self’s desire to own a horse of my own.
I’ve always liked horses, but the “horse crazy” didn’t quite hit until I was in my early teens and taking weekly riding lessons. It was all very basic, casual and laid back, but I loved it. I was obsessed with anything horse related, whether it was books, movies, music, and eventually Breyers.
Owning a real horse wasn’t possible so the models became the next best thing. I had been making miniatures of sorts for years, so I was really drawn to making horse-related miniatures, whether that was tack, props or buildings. I think I still have the plans for a huge stablemate-sized ranch, loosely based off of the one I rode at. It had stalls, pastures, a tack room, arenas, wash racks… the works.
Start of the madness collection:
First halter and “arab” halter:
First western saddle… heyyy there’s the tack trunk in the back!
It’s been at least 13 years but the “horse crazy” phase is still going strong… maybe not quite as strong as it was at one point, but strong enough. I am still unable to keep a real horse, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. I guess, in a way, models are still the next best thing.
My account on Pinterest is stuffed full of things that inspire me… real horses, tack, minis, etc.
Aside from that, I get a lot of inspiration from the people in this hobby. I have since I discovered it and will continue to do so as long as I’m involved with it. The level of talent and creativity in the hobby is awesome, and it’s always encouraging to know that there are people like me out there… who get excited over tiny stuff and new colors on plastic model horses. XD
There are too many individuals for me to list as inspiration here, so here are the first few who come to mind.
Juliane Gartska of Luckenbach Ranch – her photos have fooled me multiple times, as many of them look like full sized horses instead of models.
European hobbyists in general… some of the photos of models and miniature scenes I’ve seen are incredible and extremely realistic. It’s a side of the hobby that I rarely see among hobbyists in the USA, but I LOVE it. I have a love of haired models as well and am sad that it’s not very popular nowadays. If I ever get into customizing I think all my horses will be haired… 😛
CharArt – Char’s work is amazing. Whenever she updates with new tack photos I feel inspired to start working on my own pieces again.
Liz Shaw of Arabian Acres (now Tick-Tock Studio) was a HUGE inspiration for me and my interest in Arabian tack. I’m not sure what she’s up to nowadays, but I remember spending so much time on her old website, admiring her beautiful horses and Arabian costumes.
Last Alliance Studios – one of my very favorite hobby blogs, and always a huge inspiration! I love the amount of detail in all of her miniatures and dioramas. Plus, Julips are fantastic. 😀
Jennifer Buxton of Braymere Custom Saddlery – Jennifer’s work and blog have been a source of inspiration for several years now. Her tack tips and tutorials are a huge help and her photography is always a treat.
Outside of the hobby, there are several miniature artists that I take inspiration from as well. Here are a few of them:
Sugar Charm Shop – she makes 1/12 scale food, miniatures, animals and dolls. (and makes it look super easy!)
Mimine Mini – her miniatures are incredibly detailed and often work exactly like the real thing. She’s from Korea, so even though I don’t understand what’s being said in her videos, they’re still easy enough to follow along.
1 inch Minis – While I haven’t been following her for very long, I do admire the way she shares step-by-step photos of the creation of her miniatures.
Writing all this out has helped somewhat, so I’m off to finish some bell boot orders and hopefully get some miniature Breyer boxes completed as well… the digital files are so close to being done!
Until then…
Desktop Stables 